The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1887-12-09
INTERSTATE COMMERCE.

tiun Passed Upon.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1.-The first annual re-
port Of the interstate commission
has been laid before the secretary of the in
terror. 1t lisa printed document of forty three
pages, and bears the signatures of all
the commissioner The commission de
votes a dozen pages to a historic sketch OF
the country's transportation facilities, from
the pack horse and canoe Of the early days
to the mammoth institutions Of the present,
tracing back to their origin all those grieV-
ances and abuses which finally led to the
passage of the interstate act Under the
heading The carriers subject TO its tine
act'sl Jurisdiction" the commission says:
Some of the railroad practices which the act
undertakes to bring to an end have been com
man arannG carriers by water also ana If wrong
in themselves might justly be forbidden i'll their
case as we'll. II does not. however, intend TO In
innate an opinion that these things are common.
The commission is Of the opinion that the eX-
press business done by the railroad companies
themselves is within the act. Whether the
express companies which are independent
Of the railroads are within the contemplation
Of the act Is more DOUBTFUL. 1he SleePAu- car
companies. live stock car companies and OIL COM
panies when transport in tank cars, are a. much
subject to the temptation to discriminate as the
railroads are, and the fact il laid before congress
for such action as II may choose to take IN the
premises.
The long and short haul clause is exhaust
lively discussed, together with the reasons Of
the commission for temporarily s~uspendIng
the provision in certain sections, and they
say, in part:
The considerations which were influential in
when these temporary orders should
be granted were not more the RELIEF OF the car
riers from danger Of loss than the prevention Of
threatened disturbance OF business interests in
Certain localities, which by It's reflex action
na---l IT,I1, - d, far1,l rhn N ira
country. In large sections of the country
obedience to the general rule OF the fourth
section is without important exception.
While less has been done in the direction Of
bringing the freight tariffs INTO conformity with
thu general rule prescribed by the fourth scclon
than some persons expected, there has neVerthe-
less been a gratifying advance IN that direction.
and there is every reason to believe that this
will continue.
DIMINISHED Evils.
The commission, after quoting that partOf
the twelfth section which empowers 1t 10
Enquire into the business OF all common
carriers" saws;
This is a very important provision The COM
mission will not hesitate to take action under It
in any case in which Il mischief of public impor-
lance is thought to exist and which is not likely
to be brought to its attention On complaint of a
private prosecutor. There is every reason
to believe, however, thar some Of the
most serious evils which were notorious
in the railway service before the passage of
the act, and were in the legislative mind as
reasons tor its enactment, have now almost
ceased to exist. One OF these was the giving of
special AID secret rebates. Complaints OF IN
just discrimination and the giving of undue and
unreasonable preferences by the open rates are
frequent and 1t is not to be denied that IN the
existing tariffs there are many rates which, as
compared with others made BY the same carriers,
seem to be unfair and oppressive. But even
as regards This species Of injustice the good
effects Of the Jaw are manifest. Being now COM
PEELED to Justify their rates when called
on, makes managers more cautious about doing
injustice. In a majority Of cases either the
cOmplaiuanC has been found to be mistaken in
his facts, or If wrCngtd, it has been through
carelessness or mismanagemGnt, which the car
rier readily corrected; or IL the facts presented
a case OF difference OF opinion, the parties, when
brought iuto Communication succeeded IN find
ing some basis for settlement without further
interruption. This method Of disFOsing of COM
plants is believed by the commission 10 be more
useful than any other, because its tendency is
toward the establishment of desirable relations
between the carrier ana those VINO must be the
customer.
Tn report comments at some length on
the plan adopted by the commission of haV-
ing the hearings before it stripped of all I'M
necessary formality so that plain men could
be speedily heard without the aid of law
yers. The commission urges the desirable
itys of a uniform freight classification
throughout the country, but doubts the
abiAlbJ W AGdCh bAiS AAdLlGI Nv lGSISAdLNOu,
while without it there Is a gradual approach
to uniformity effected by the railroads
themselves. Amy commission appointed by
the government to make a uniform freight
classification would have to go at it in much
the same way. The commission says:
The pooling of freights and or railroad earn
ings, 50 far as the commission has knowledge or
on the subject, came to an end
when the act took effect. But as pooling was
only one of che several purposes had in view in
forming railroad associations, the leading assoc
Citations have not been dissolved, but have been
continued in existence for other objects. Among
these objects arethe making of regular rates for
uninterrupted aud harmonious railroad COM
munication and exchange of traffic within the
territory embraced by their Workings. Some
regulations ia addition To- those made by the
law are almost il not altogether Indispensable.
while the seventh section OF the act for-
bids the carriers preventing shipments from be-
ing continuous by the device Of changing time
schedules, carriage la different cars, etc.,
IL has not undertaken to provide for
the making of such time schedules as would
facilitate the continuous shipment. or 10 pre-
scribe rules for the loading and movement Of
cars for that purpose.
REASONABLE cHARGEs
In its chapter upon reasonable charges"
the commission says:
OF the duties deyoIved upon the commission
by the act TO regulate commerce. none is more
perplexing and difficult than that of passing
upon COMPLAINTS indtt7 OF rates as Deing unreal
sonable. The question Of the reasonableness Of
rates involves many considerations and is so Eff
footed by circumstances and conditions which
may at first blush seem foreign that
it is quite impossible 70 deal with it on purely
mathematical principles. or on any principles
whatever, without a consciousness that no con-
clusi0n which may be reached can BY demon
~stratiOn be shown TO be absolutely correct. The
pabiie interest fs best served when the rates are
so apporti0ned as TO encourage the largest
practicable change OF products between
different sections OF our country and
with foreign countries: and this can only
be done by making values an important con-
sideration. and BY placing upon the higher
classes Of freight some share Of the burden that
on q relatively equal apportionment IL service
alone were considered. would fail upon those Of
less value A study of the act has satisfied the
commission that it was intended In les passage |
70 preserve for the people the benefits
Of competition as between the several
transportation lines OF The country.
II that snail De done the towns which have great
natural advantages. or advantages acquired by
large expenditures OF money in establishing new
thofoughfates Of will have cheaper